


Light in the Darkness

by Captainrexsbiggestho



Series: Cityscapes and Bandaids [3]
Category: Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) - All Media Types
Genre: Fluff, clones and kids
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-21
Updated: 2018-09-21
Packaged: 2019-07-15 00:02:34
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 938
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16051307
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Captainrexsbiggestho/pseuds/Captainrexsbiggestho
Summary: Switch finds a reason to keep fighting in this war





	Light in the Darkness

This wasn’t at all what switch had expected, the Coruscant Guard did have its fare share of scraps resulting in injuries, mostly broken noses from scuffles with unpleasant citizens and the very occasional blaster wound, when some anti clone protester took a pot shot. _Don’t they understand, we are trying to protect them._ From what Switch had seen while on the city planet, no they didn’t understand, they knew nothing about the war and the lives lost, the news that flashed at them only ever briefly covered the war, then it was always onto something else, like some celebrity’s new pet, _civvies, weird bunch._ Switch could only ever shake his head as he watched the holo. But with all the injuries that came to him he was kept busy, Commander Fox had said he was one of very few medics in the guard, which made him valuable.

Switch particularly enjoyed it when cruisers landed from deployment, it meant he could catch up on news from the battles and old friends. The returned troops would naturally head straight to 79’s. Too much to drink and a lot of battle stress tended to bring out the worst in people, getting called to 79’s wasn’t uncommon, he had lost count of the amount of busted noses and black eyes he had treated as the result of a bar fight, more disturbing and even more disturbingly common, were the poisoning cases, they happened every time, Young troopers coming back from their first battles, they’ve lost friends, possibly their batch mates, they go to 79’s for the first time, they find that the cheap booze makes them feel better, so they keep going, its all fun until Switch is dragging them out of the club unconscious or they are sitting in the small med bay having their stomach pumped, it was usually after the fact when the stories started to flow, as did the tears from those boys, Switch knew they were only boys, some of them only 8 years old, but he always sat and listened, he knew what it was like to feel alone in a dark world, even if just for a night he wouldn’t turn a brother away.

It was night shift, Switch usually enjoyed the night shift and did it often, he liked the crisp air and the comforting sight of the starry sky, meaning his brothers were out there somewhere. It was the usual thing, patrol of the upper sectors then down to the lower levels. The lower levels were where he felt he needed to be, people were desperate for help there, overdoses, starvation, assault victims, people fleeing from bad homes… all of them needed help, he was all too happy to give it. His pack weighing down on his shoulders he finished up with the last of the broken and dejected, the end of his shift was nearing when he felt a tapping on the thigh plate of his armour, looking down he saw a young girl, a young Togruta. Crouching down he took his helmet off, “You need my help?” he asked her, to which she nodded in reply and took his hand. He could already tell that this young child was fending for herself, her clothes filthy and ragged, cheeks too hollow for that of a child, she needed a roof over her head, Switch didn’t care what Fox was going to say when he bought a child into the med bay, as far as he was concerned it was his duty to protect citizens of the republic and he was doing exactly that.

Switch trudged his way back into the med bay, knowing full well that he was long past the end of his shift, a half-starved child cradled in his arms, she had gotten too tired to walk halfway back, her eyes drooping as she dragged her feet, he had scooped her up, head resting on his shoulder. Entering the small med bay, he was glad it was mostly empty. A few hours later and she had been bathed, fed and wrapped in a blanket, just looking after her made Switch wonder how it would be to have a child of his own, but he quickly cast that idea aside with the impossibility of it, _don’t be dumb, you’re a clone, clones don’t get families and happy endings._ He was constantly reminding himself of that sentiment. But he would make sure that this young girl who had put all her trust in him, would be safe from harm, he wanted to personally make sure she grew up to have a happy life, he wouldn’t let her feel alone and abandoned again.

There had been two days of hiding her from superior officers and making calls to try and find her a home, Switch saw this as his duty as a medic, her name was Asha and she had become a light in the darkness for him, but he knew it would be better for her to have a real family. When two young people appeared at the med bay with warm smiles he knew Asha would be safe them, they were good people. He gave her one last hug, her little arms around his neck before handing her over to the young couple and watching them walk away, it hurt to watch but he knew she was safe. He had a picture of the two of them together, printed onto flimsi, he tucked it into his belt and carried everywhere after that, afraid to lose it, afraid of the thought of not making it through the war to see Asha again.


End file.
